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enThe FourFourTwo Preview: Swansea vs ArsenalPremier League | Liberty Stadium | Sun 9 Nov | 4pmBen Welchhttp://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/fourfourtwo-preview-swansea-vs-arsenal-0
Billed as
Whatever happens, it will be the referee’s fault.
The lowdown
Those of you expecting a pass-a-thon at the Liberty Stadium on Sunday might want to re-adjust your expectations.
Swansea have modified their approach under Garry Monk. To add some defensive steel and organisation to their play, they have sacrificed elements of their free-flowing football.
During their goalless draw with Everton last week, the Swans had just 33.16% of the ball – their lowest ever in a Premier League game. This manifested itself in 300 attempted passes –a figure Roberto Martinez’s side almost doubled. The previous week newly-promoted Leicester saw 51% of the ball in South Wales, despite losing 2-0.
This isn’t an anomaly. Last season Swansea averaged 57% possession. This term is only 10 games old, but that figure has dropped to 50%. Monk’s combatants have also displayed greater aggression under his stewardship – amassing 25 yellow cards and three reds this season. That’s as many dismissals as they suffered during the 2013/14 Premier League campaign.
This new-look Swansea side like to get stuck in – something Sunday’s opponents Arsenal have never enjoyed since the Invincibles side was dismantled. Their defensive fragility and mental strength were called into question again this week after they surrendered a 3-0 lead against Anderlecht in the Champions League.
The Gunners looked to be cruising into the knockout stage, before Anthony Vanden Borre struck twice to set-up nervy finish at the Emirates.
Inevitably, Arsenal collapsed and Aleksandar Mitrovic equalised in the last minute. Arsene Wenger was furious with his team’s “poor defensive performance” and accused his players of underestimating Anderlecht.
With a nine-point gap between themselves and league leaders Chelsea, Arsenal can’t afford to let this set-back rock them. They need to bounce back quickly and win on the road against sixth placed Swansea – who trail the Gunners by two points – will restore confidence.
Wenger will be looking to his star performer – Alexis Sanchez – to galvanise the team after Tuesday’s slip. The Chilean has netted five goals in his last three games. Swansea’s centre-back pairing of captain Ashley Williams and new boy Federico Fernandez better pack their fishing net and tranquilizer gun.
Team news
Jack Wilshere is expected to return for the Gunners on Sunday after missing games against Burnley and Anderlecht with a virus. He’ll replace Arsenal captain Mikel Arteta, who is out with a hamstring strain. Swansea trio Dwight Tiendalli, Leon Britton and Jordi Amat are targeting a return to the first-team squad.
Key battle: Wilfried Bony vs Nacho Monreal
Poor old Monreal. He’s not a centre-back, but with Laurent Koscielny sidelined and everyone else looking away, whistling with ignorance, he’s been shoved into the middle of the Arsenal rearguard. Monk will have identified this weakness and instruct his main man Bony to target the Spaniard. The Ivorian striker – who is negotiating a new contract – has netted four times in 10 Premier League appearances this season.
With 100% pass completion rate against Anderlecht, you can’t fault Monreal’s contribution to Arsenal’s passing game, but with no clerances made in the box and a penalty given away, his lack of experience defending balls into the box is evident. If the Swans can get the ball into Bony he will bully the Spaniard and punish any sloppy defending – just ask Leicester. During their visit to the Liberty the Ivorian struck twice.
He finished a slick passing move in the first half and punished Liam Moore’s inexperience after the interval to secure the points. With his strength, slick link-up play and eye for goal, Bony has the firepower to blast holes in Arsenal’s defence.
The managers
These two love a moan and both had a pop at the officials after their most recent results. But the referee wasn’t the only one to receive criticism from Wenger. The Frenchman blasted his players, especially the defence, after their shambolic midweek performance. He has demanded they all take responsibility, rather than leave it to Sanchez. “It's the first time that we've given a three-goal lead away [since Sanchez been here],” he said. “We need everybody to step up. You want everybody to perform at their best. I believe defensively as a performance across the pitch, we were very poor.”
Monk was unhappy with referee Kevin Friend after he failed to award a penalty when Everton defender Antolin Alcaraz handled in the box. But he was full of praise for his players after they held out for a point with 10 men at Goodison Park – singling out their new defensive strength as a major factor.
“I’ve played in many Swansea teams and we’ve always played attractive football, but something I felt was, not that we are soft, but that we did not do enough work defensively on our shape and the way we defended together as a team,” he said.
“It’s something I brought in this season because there are going to be periods when we can’t play free-flowing football. We are going to have to do the other side of it. Had we not done that work we might have lost this game, but we deserved the point in the end.”
Facts and figures
Danny Welbeck has scored 3 goals in 3 Premier League appearances against Swansea.
Arsenal have conceded a league high 64% of goals in the first half of Premier League games this season.
​Arsenal have scored exactly 2 goals in each of their last 5 away trips to Swansea in all competitions. That has been enough for 3 wins, 1 draw and 1 defeat.
More FFT Stats Zone facts
FourFourTwo prediction
Arsenal are shaken. Swansea are up for a fight. Entertaining 2-2 draw.
Back 2-2 at 14/1 with Bet365. Odds right at time of publication
Swansea vs Arsenal LIVE ANALYSIS with Stats Zone
featureFri, 07 Nov 2014 13:10:00 +0000Gregg Davies280851 at http://www.fourfourtwo.comPlenty of positives for Arsenals MonrealNacho Monreal will consider a top-four finish and winning the FA Cup as a successful season for Arsenal.http://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/plenty-positives-monreal
An inconsistent second half of the campaign has seen Arsenal slip from top spot in the Premier League on New Year's Day to battling for a fourth-placed finish with three games to go.
Arsene Wenger's side have also exited the UEFA Champions League in the last 16, but have a chance to end their nine-year wait for silverware in the FA Cup final against Hull City next month.
Rather than look on the season as a disappointment, Monreal believes it should be seen as a positive that Arsenal could secure a place in Europe's premier club competition and lift a trophy.
"I understand that the fans can be discouraged due to the fact that we had chances to win the title at some point this season," the defender told the club's official website.
"But finishing in the top four is a great objective and if we can add up some silverware by winning the FA Cup this season's outcome will be positive.
"It is true that we had a hard time. We didn't play well against the best teams and we conceded many goals.
"People shouldn't forget that a Premier League top-four finish is really complicated since many teams in the league have a great level, (and) clinching a Champions League spot for 17 years in a row is not easy at all."
Everton are challenging Arsenal for that final Champions League place, with Roberto Martinez's men only a point behind going into this weekend's fixtures.
news_articleTue, 22 Apr 2014 15:25:57 +0000158201 at http://www.fourfourtwo.comWenger calms fears over defensive injuriesArsenal manager Arsene Wenger is confident defensive duo Laurent Koscielny and Nacho Monreal will be fit to face Stoke City next weekend.http://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/wenger-calms-fears-over-defensive-duo
Arsenal maintained their push for the Premier League title on Saturday with a 4-1 victory over struggling Sunderland at the Emirates Stadium.
However, full-back Monreal had to be replaced by Carl Jenkinson at half-time due to a foot complaint and Koscielny, the scorer of Arsenal's fourth goal, also failed to complete the match after being hampered by a back problem.
Wenger allayed fears over the fitness of the duo, revealing the pair remain in contention for Arsenal's trip to the Britannia Stadium.
"Laurent Koscielny has a back problem," he said. "Nacho Monreal has a foot problem. I think both of them should be fit for next week."
Record signing Mesut Ozil (thigh) missed the encounter with Gus Poyet's charges, while fellow midfielder Jack Wilshere played 90 minutes despite struggling with a hamstring complaint.
Wenger believes neither injury is serious.
"Mesut Ozil has a thigh problem but should also be available next week; he is in the dressing room now," the Arsenal boss added.
"Jack Wilshere has a tight hamstring, I don't know if it is bad or not. They (the physios) told me it's not too bad."
news_articleSun, 23 Feb 2014 11:22:15 +0000127541 at http://www.fourfourtwo.comFive lessons from Arsenal 2-0 Fulham: Monreal Wilsheres dirty work lets Santi shineArsenal retained top spot in the Premier League with a comfortable win over the Cottagers. FFTs Ben Welch was in the Emirates Stadium press box to analyse the action with Stats ZoneBen Welchhttp://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/five-lessons-arsenal-2-0-fulham-monreal-wilsheres-dirty-work-lets-santi-shine
Monreal and Wilshere free up match-winner Cazorla
Arsenal’s attack was operating at a pedestrian pace in the first half, but in the second they made a slight tactical adjustment in midfield and this paid dividends. To throw Scott Parker and Steven Sidwell off their scent, Jack Wilshere and Santi Cazorla interchanged positions after the interval. This pulled the visiting defenders out of position and freed up space for the Spanish maestro to make a difference. Left-back Nacho Monreal also pushed forward into more advanced positions, creating 2 vs 1 situations against the isolated Sascha Riether. Monreal was conservative in the opening 45 minutes, making just 10 successful passes in the attacking third. After the break he made 15 – with just one failing to find the feet of a team-mate.
This owed much to Wilshere’s presence on the left in the second half. During the first half the England international attempted more passes out wide to the right, looking for his favoured outlet Bacary Sagna, but with the guests doing a good job of blocking that path to goal he switched his focus to the left. Cazorla shifted inside and struck twice in five minutes – the first coming courtesy of incisive build-up play down the left channel, with Wilshere making the final telling pass. Both of the Spaniard’s goals came from central positions. These intelligent manoeuvres enabled Arsenal to play with more fluidity and adventure, resulting in Cazorla hitting two decisive strikes.
Kacaniklic’s loss of discipline proves costly
Not many teams come to the Emirates and manage to roadblock Sagna’s surges down the right wing, but in Saturday’s first half, Fulham created an impenetrable blockade. Sentries Kieran Richardson and Kacaniklic dropped back into position, forcing livewire Serge Gnabry inside. When Sagna overlapped there was nowhere to go. Shepherding the Gunners inside can be costly, but in the first half, when Fulham’s discipline, focus and energy levels were up, it steered Arsenal into congested areas of the pitch. Gnabry and Sagna only exchanged 13 passes in the 69 minutes they were on the pitch together – with the German playing the ball to the Frenchman just 5 times. Gnabry managed just 2 crosses all game and Sagna 4. Against Norwich, when Arsenal won 4-1, the French right-back whipped 7 balls into the box. None yielded a goal, but if you keep putting balls in the box one of four things can happen – you score, you tire the opposition out, you win a corner or you pick up the clearance on the edge of the box.
To keep pass-masters Arsenal at bay you have to maintain your focus and organisation for the entire match, not just a half. In the opening 45 minutes Kacaniklic kept his discipline and helped maintain the Cottagers’ shape. After the interval he abandoned his post and went searching for the ball. He completed 7 of 8 attempted passes in the first half, all of which were down the left wing or played inside from the channel. In the second half 5 of his 11 attempted passes came from positions on the right. Only 2 of the Swede’s 7 dribbles were successful, and too often he conceded possession when Fulham needed him to keep hold of it. When one player breaks rank it unsettles the equilibrium of the system and this opens up gaps all over the pitch. Space is a gift you can’t afford to give Arsenal.
Fulham’s sloppy passing invited pressure
Rene Meulensteen men knew they were going to be chasing the ball for 90 minutes. Doing this from the first whistle to the final peep, saps the energy out of players’ legs. And with tiredness come mistakes. When your defence is being asked to deliver a flawless performance they need the midfield and attack to offer some respite by picking up loose balls and keeping possession. When Fulham did get the ball they gave it away cheaply in the attacking third. With men committed forward to the counter-attack they often found themselves busting a gut to get back because their passing accuracy was just 59%. Dimitar Berbatov’s arms spent more time up in the air expressing frustration than they did whirring around as part of a running action.
Hangeland and Burn add defensive resilience
Ok, yes we know Fulham lost 2-0, but after getting thumped 4-1 by Sunderland at Craven Cottage this was a huge improvement. Brede Hangeland and debutant Dan Burn were at the heart of this defiance. The Norwegian was making his first Premier League appearance since Fulham’s 4-1 win at Crystal in October. During his time on the sidelines with a sciatic nerve problem in his leg, 15 games in all competitions, Fulham conceded 41 goals – an average of almost three per game – during this period. His calming influence and physical presence were evident in the first half, as he and Burn kept Olivier Giroud quiet. The French striker received just 15 passes in the first half. When the game opened up in the second half and Fulham were stretched out he was picked out by his team-mates 24 times.
The visitors’ resilience restricted the Gunners to 9 shots on goal in the opening 45 minutes – with only 2 hitting the target. After half-time they had 13 more – 4 troubled Maarten Stekelenburg, and 2 found the net. There was nothing either Hangeland or Burn could do about the goals. Combined, the pair made 13 clearances and both were in position to make goalline clearances. Hangeland denied Mesut Özil and Burn stopped Sagna scoring his second goal of the season.
It was an especially impressive performance from Burn, appearing in his first Premier League game after the termination of his loan at Birmingham. Meulensteen’s decision to bring the English defender back to west London looks a shrewd move. The Dutch manager will be pleased to have him and Hangeland in a back four that has shipped a Premier League-high 48 goals – 10 more than any other side.
Parker and Sidwell lead by example
When the referee blew the final whistle you couldn’t help but feel some sympathy for Fulham’s holding midfielders. They have a combined age of 64, but the veteran duo run around like a pair of teenagers making their Premier League debuts.
Parker was the Cottagers’ top passer, completing 61 exchanges - only the Arsenal quartet of Wilshere, Ozil, Mathieu Flamini and Cazorla bettered this. Fulham’s skipper made 2 blocks, 4 interceptions and a game-high 6 tackles. Sidwell topped the charts for ball recoveries (11) and interceptions (5). He was one of the game’s leading tacklers, with 3 successful challenges, and matched Parker for blocks. The former Gunner also had his team’s best effort on goal with a thunderous shot that was well saved by Wojciech Szczesny. Parker and Sidwell’s efforts deserved greater reward, but unfortunately their team-mates were unable to match their application and Arsenal’s quality proved decisive.
featureMon, 20 Jan 2014 10:02:36 +0000Joe Brewin112960 at http://www.fourfourtwo.comWhat we learned from Arsenal 2-0 Hull: Theres still plenty of life in Wengers fringeArsenal cruised to a 2-0 victory over Hull City at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday and FourFourTwos Ben Welch was there to analyse the action using Stats ZoneBen Welchhttp://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/what-we-learned-arsenal-2-0-hull-theres-still-plenty-life-wengers-fringe
Arsenal’s fringe players have what it takes to step up
When he’s not crashing cars and stripping down to his pants, Nicklas Bendtner does a bit of side work as a footballer. He doesn’t usually take this part-time work very seriously – he can usually be found strolling around the pitch, readjusting his little ponytail and looking for the Emirates' exit signs. But against Hull City he actually did a good impression of a professional footballer.
Given a rare start by Arsene Wenger, Bendtner took his chance. He scored his first goal for the Gunners since March 2011 inside two minutes, heading home Carl Jenkinson’s pinpoint cross. The Danish striker managed two more shots on goal – one even hit the target. He put his 6ft 3in frame to good use, winning three of his five aerial duels. Along with Bendtner, Jenkinson and Nacho Monreal were handed starting berths and followed the example set by their superiors, Bacary Sagna and Kieran Gibbs. Both full-backs posed an attacking threat and stifled the visitors when they tried to get the ball into the channels. Monreal was one of Arsenal’s top passers on the night, completing 21 of 22 attempts in the attacking third.
The pass masters have got more trigger-happy
When they rip teams apart, pundits wax lyrical about Arsenal’s short, sharp, incisive passing. When they get it wrong, they’re criticised for trying to walk the ball into the back of the net.
Against Steve Bruce’s Hull, the Gunners did a bit of both. Over the 90 minutes Arsenal had 20 shots on goal. Visiting goalkeeper Allan McGregor was given plenty to do, with seven strikes finding the target. Long-range shooting is not something you would usually associate with the kings of possession, but five of their efforts on the night were from outside of the box. Aaron Ramsey was responsible for three of these.
Full of confidence, the Welsh midfielder, was more than happy to let fly when the opportunity presented itself. No longer can teams just invite the Gunners to open them up – this multi-talented midfield are just as enthusiastic about shooting as they are passing.
Hull couldn’t cope with Arsenal’s pressing game
Usually it’s the Gunners on the receiving end of a high-energy pressing game, but on Wednesday night it was them dishing out the harassment.
Predictably, most of the game was played in the visitors' half, with Arsenal dominating possession, but on the odd occasion they did give it away Wenger’s men made sure Hull’s technical ability was put to the test. They shut out their guests quickly, often forcing them to go backwards or long. When the Tigers played the ball back towards their own goal they had more success (95% completion rate) – as you’d expect.
The hosts were more than happy for them to drop deep into their own territory. Lose the ball there and the Gunners are in business. To avoid this Hull had to go long – but unfortunately they had Danny Graham and Yannick Sagbo up front. Isolated and starved of quality service, the pair had little joy against Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny. Only 128 of their 193 forward passes found their intended target – that’s a completion rate of just 66%.
Santi Cazorla weaves it all together
Mesut Ozil and Ramsey are a double act with more punchlines than the Two Ronnies. Not sure what that means? Neither are we, but the point is that there’s an end product to all their preamble. Ramsey played his part in the opening goal with a perfectly measured pass to Jenkinson. He then threaded a masterful through ball to Ozil who slotted past McGregor to double Arsenal’s lead.
But there’s a third member of this devastating strike team. He’s 5ft 4in, plays with a smile and uses the ball with ruthless efficiency. Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for Santi Cazorla. Watching him zip around the pitch is a joy – he plays the ball around tight corners, dances away from danger and controls the momentum of the game. He has the ability to keep possession ticking over before shifting up a gear when he sees an opening – often an opening no one else has seen.
Enough of the gushing praise – the stats tell their own story. The little Spaniard’s use of the ball was unrivalled – 90 of 99 passes found the feet of a team-mate. Of these exchanges, 47 came in the attacking third – again no player could match his numbers. Peerless.
Hull didn’t do enough to disrupt the rhythm
Criticising Hull’s players for their performance against Arsenal would be harsh. You could sit there and say they should have done this and should have done that, but bottom line is that they were outclassed by a team of far superior players. Simple as that.
However, lesser teams have gone to the Emirates, barely seen the ball and managed to upset Arsenal’s tempo. It’s crude, but you’ve got to get in their faces, and Hull didn’t manage that.
They tried to create an impregnable blue wall, but by backing off – possibly in fear – they invited pressure. Statistically speaking their tackling was effective, with 21 successful challenges from an attempted 29, but the majority of these were made on the edge of their own box. This is too late in the day – let Arsenal get in this area and you’re in trouble. They needed to win the ball higher up the pitch so they could relieve the pressure on their back four.
If you can’t out-pass Arsenal you try and take the game to the skies, but Hull conceded ground in that battle as well – losing 20 of the 33 aerial contests. They took a beating in every area of the game.
ARSENAL 2-0 HULLAnalyse this game yourself with Stats Zone
featureThu, 05 Dec 2013 11:54:51 +0000James Maw91005 at http://www.fourfourtwo.com